Kelly Hayes
Flags will be lowered at half staff on Tuesday to honor the victims of the U.S. Capitol attack on Friday.
President Joe Biden announced the order Saturday, one day after a man rammed his car into the Capitol barricade, killing one Capitol police office and hitting another. The slain officer was identified as William “Billy” Evans, an 18-year veteran who was a member of the department’s first responders unit.
Police shot the 25-year-old suspect, who died at a hospital.
This was the second line-of-duty death in the department after the death of officer Brian Sicknick, who was attacked by rioters during the Jan. 6 insurrection and died a day later. Another officer, Howard Liebengood, died by suicide in the days following.
The attack Friday hit just as authorities had begun pulling back some of the emergency measures put up after the Jan. 6 insurrection. These measures included the installation of a giant fence around the Capitol perimeter and restricted traffic along the roads closest to the building.
Authorities said there wasn’t an ongoing threat after the attack, though the Capitol was put on lockdown for a time as a precaution.
There was also no immediate connection apparent between Friday’s crash and the Jan. 6 riot, according to The Associated Press.
